Cast of 'The Sound of Music' remake have mountain to climb

Thursday

Dec 5, 2013 at 12:01 AMDec 5, 2013 at 11:12 AM

NEW YORK - The producers of a new version of the musical The Sound of Music knew that a remake of the beloved 1965 Oscar-winning film, starring Julie Andrews, would be considered a sacrilege. And country singer Carrie Underwood, tapped to play the aspiring nun who reintroduces music into the home of a strict Austrian widower, finds herself cringing when she hears the word remake.

NEW YORK — The producers of a new version of the musical The Sound of Music knew that a remake of the beloved 1965 Oscar-winning film, starring Julie Andrews, would be considered a sacrilege.

And country singer Carrie Underwood, tapped to play the aspiring nun who reintroduces music into the home of a strict Austrian widower, finds herself cringing when she hears the word remake.

So, after the lights go up tonight on the live televised version of The Sound of Music on NBC, audiences will happen upon a few twists to some of their favorite things and a lonely goatherd or two in an unusual place.

As producers, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron have gone back to the Broadway show first seen in 1959 for their version — to be presented in a format, that of live television, not used for about 50 years.

“You would never, ever contemplate doing a remake of the movie of The Sound of Music, because it’s a classic,” Zadan said. “It’s perfect. It would be sacrilege. It would be a huge mistake to even contemplate it.

“We thought if we did the stage show, not on a Broadway stage but on movie sets, it would be something unique, a hybrid. ... It is an extraordinary experiment. The TV audience is going to see something live that has never been done in this generation.”

Underwood, who made her name by winning the TV talent show American Idol in 2005, has become a big star in country music, with hits such as Two Black Cadillacs.

She plays Maria von Trapp, the lead role played by Andrews in the film and by Mary Martin in the original Broadway production.

True Blood actor Stephen Moyer plays the captain and father of seven who flees Austria rather than take a job with Hitler’s navy on the eve of World War II.

The Sound of Music — one of the highest-grossing films of all time — won five Oscars.

Andrews was nominated for best actress but didn’t win.

Zadan and Meron say fans familiar only with the film could be in for a few surprises.

Not only is The Lonely Goatherd sung during a thunderstorm rather than My Favorite Things, as in the movie, but the stage show has a slightly darker tone, with more emphasis on the looming Nazi threat.

“This version does have all the things that audiences love about the film, but they are presented in a new way for most people,” Meron said. “It brings out different values. The stage show has more substance regarding the encroaching Nazis.”

Underwood, who has little acting experience, has been rehearsing since late September. She arrived with her lines already memorized but has been working with a dialect coach — not to sound more Austrian but to even out her accent.

“I am from Oklahoma. I live in Tennessee. I sing country music; sometimes, words really slip out sounding like where I am from,” said Underwood, 30. “I am trying to sound as un-twangy as I can sound.”

She admits to some nerves about being compared with Andrews but hopes that audiences will see the new show as a different way to fall in love with The Sound of Music.

Zadan and Meron, who produced the 2013 Oscar ceremony as well as the film versions of the musicals of Chicago and Hairspray, said Underwood was their first choice to play Maria because of her age, crossover appeal and vocal ability.

They hope that the show tonight will revive the live-TV musical tradition popular in the 1950s.

“It’s a show you want to watch live. If someone trips and falls or hits a bad note or forgets their lines, you are going to see it,” Zadan said.

“We have taken on something that is really exciting, and we are thrilled to death — and also scared to death.”

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.